New Delhi: The government is planning to
subsidise new domestic LPG connection to families living below
poverty line, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas
Jitin Prasada said Tuesday.
At present, a consumer has to shell out Rs 1,250 as
security deposit for getting a new LPG connection and another
Rs 150 for pressure regulator.
"The Planning Commission has agreed to provide half of
(this) Rs 1,400 (from Plan funds)," he told reporters here.
The modalities of who should bear the remaining Rs 700
are being worked out, he said, but did not give a timeframe by
when the new scheme would be launched.
"We propose to give LPG connections to 35 lakh BPL
families," he said.
The budgetary requirement for implementing the scheme
would work out to around Rs 490 crore.
The Plan panel has given approval to this scheme and
agreed to provide 50 per cent of the cost from the Plan funds.
The scheme would be operated through public sector oil
marketing companies - Indian Oil Corp, Bharat Petroleum Corp
and Hindustan Petroleum Corp.
Prasada said his ministry`s Vision 2015 is to extend the
usage of LPG for cooking purpose in rural/ under served areas
so that standard of life in rural areas improves and
kerosene/fire-wood is replaced by the clean fuel.
About 5.5 crore new LPG connections are proposed to be
released till 2015 to reach 16 crore customers with most of
the new connections being released in rural areas.
Of approximately one crore connections to be released
each year, it is expected that number of BPL families will be
on an average around 35 lakh every year.
PTI
